1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to an improved joint strip for finishing the joint between two panels of adjacent wallboard and to the wall formed using the improved joint strip.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Wallboard building panels are widely used in the building industry, including the manufactured housing industry, to form relatively inexpensive and durable walls. Although the dimensions can vary, the wallboard building panels are typically manufactured in 4'.times.8', 4'.times.9', 4'.times.10', and 4'.times.12' sizes and are nailed, screwed, or otherwise secured to wall studs. Although the wallboard building panels may be easily secured to the wall support studs to form a wall, it is well known that the joints between the adjacent panels are difficult to hide or decorate. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,157,271 to Moore discloses a drywall filler for joining two conventional drywall building panels. The joint filler material is present in the shape of a tapered top strip with a center spline extending outwardly from the strip center. The strip is formed of a one-piece vinyl molded plastic member. The drywall filler is disadvantageous, however, in that it is incapable of being sanded to produce a smooth surface and that its sharp taper causes a discontinuity between joint filler and drywall surfaces.
Among the efforts to conceal the joint between wallboard building panels is the use of predecorated panels, which often tend to emphasize the joint rather than create a monolithic, seamless wall. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 3,816,199 to Dawdy et al. discloses a concealed joint for the fastening of a predecorated wallboard. The patent teaches pressing the edges of the predecorated sheet into joints formed between the panels and then inserting a decorative strip to hold the predecorated sheet edges in place in the joint. Similarly, U.S. Pat. No. 4,656,805 to Wenkowski discloses a paper batten for use in "concealing" the joints between predecorated gypsum wallboard. The batten is fabricated from predecorated wallboard paper with pressure-sensitive adhesive on the back thereof for securement over the joint. Unfortunately, the paper battens tend to wrinkle and fall off. Moreover, the battens when in place are still noticeable and do not create the appearance of a monolithic or seamless wall.
In U.S. Pat. No. 3,708,935 to Kossuth et al. a concealed joint for the fastening of predecorated wallboard is disclosed. Kossuth et al., however, uses a tapered edge wallboard and the "mud system" for filling the channel between the sheets and the tapered area. However, a significant shortcoming is that this method requires the use of tapered edge wallboard and considerable skilled labor to properly finish the joints.
Recent efforts, however, have focused on eliminating the need for skilled labor to form the "seamless" joints between adjacent predecorated wallboard building panels by pulling back edge flaps of the predecorated covering to expose the joint, adhering a joint strip over a groove formed by the adjacent wallboard panels, and positioning the wall covering edge flaps in an overlapping relationship. The overlapping portions of the edge flaps are removed, and the remaining portion of the edge flaps are adhered to the joint strip such that a smooth, seamless appearing joint surface is formed between the predecorated wallboards. One such system is set forth in U.S. Pat. No. 5,311,717, of which this application is a continuation-in-part. In this patent there is disclosed a wall formed of predecorated wallboard in which a groove has been cut to accommodate a joint strip. The joint strip is sealed in the groove and the flaps of the decorated wallboard are sealed over the joint strip. While that invention forms an attractive wall and provides benefits in reduced costs of manufacturing, it is limited, because of the nature of the joint strip, to walls formed of predecorated wallboard.
The present invention overcomes the deficiencies of the prior art by using a joint strip with superior properties thereby eliminating the requirement to use predecorated wallboard for forming a monolithic appearing wall.
It is therefore the general object of the present invention to provide an improved joint strip for finishing the joint between two sheets of adjacent wallboard.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a method for making a monolithic appearing wall formed using the joint strip of the present invention.
A further object of the present invention is to provide a monolithic appearing wall which eliminates the need to fill joints with joint compound and the substantial skilled labor requirements to properly apply the joint compound.
A still further object of the present invention is to provide an improved joint strip which is capable of withstanding movement connected with daily usage such that predecorative covering is no longer necessary.